'Out of favour' Afridi unlikely to make cut in Pak team for Proteas ODI series

Islamabad, Feb 19 (ANI): Shahid Afridi is unlikely to be recalled in the Pakistan one-day team for their five-match series against South Africa, starting on March 10, however the all rounder is certain to be selected in the Twenty20 team.

The Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) selection committee will assemble in a couple of days to finalise squads for the T20s and ODIs against South Africa, the Express Tribune reports.

According to a selector, the committee is targeting to finalise the squad and send it to the PCB chairman by Friday.

The three-match Test series will culminate on February 26, while the limited-overs leg of the tour that features two of Twenty20s and five ODIs will kick off on March 1 with the Durban Twenty20 fixture, the paper said.

The selector said Afridi, who was dropped for the ODI series against India, was unlikely to be recalled in the format against South Africa.

The selector added apart from recent matches against Afghanistan, Afridi hasn't played much and there are reservations on his selection for the ODI series.

The star all-rounder struggled in the format last year and scored only 182 runs in his last 16 ODIs at an average of 15.16 and took 15 wickets at 43.13 before being dropped from the ODI squad against India.

However, the selector said the former captain can make a comeback in the shorter format on the tour, adding Afridi is being considered for the Twenty20 matches and he is highly likely to be retained in the format.

The selector said if Afridi performs well, there is a chance the team management could retain him for the ODI series as well.

On the chances of Abdul Razzaq, who was also dropped from the India tour, the selector said the committee had no clue on the fitness and form of the seasoned all-rounder (ANI)

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